Living with a changing China

The socioeconomic landscape of China today is beyond recognition compared with the years before 1978.

David Ben Kay, former general counsel of Microsoft China, recalls that when he first visited China in 1980, people bought daily necessities with coupons due to scanty supplies in the planned economy.

"There were only few shops in Beijing selling imported food, which could be purchased only using 'foreign exchange certificates'," he said.

The certificate became obsolete in 1995, three years after China officially decided to build a market economy. In 2001, China joined the WTO and was embraced by global market. Now imported food can be easily bought in supermarkets or online.

"Now looking back, I find China's development full of surprises," said Kay, who now runs a company in China offering advice to local and foreign start-ups. Boasting entrepreneurship and innovation, many new companies have footholds in the expanding Chinese market.

"The whole world enjoys 'made-in-China'. Chinese products are now everywhere in Indian households, from clothes to light bulbs. Even the statues in many Indian temples are carved by Chinese," Sinha said.

Sinha is referring to China's strong exports, which have delivered decades of growth but the target of reform now is domestic consumption rather than waning global demand.

Sinha sees greater possibilities for India in this trend. "China used to enjoy a large trade surplus with India by importing ores and exporting industrial products. We are glad to see China is restructuring its economy with more emphasis on finance and digital sectors."

He is now the deputy director of Sino-India Entrepreneurship Development Center, an institute in China's Yunnan Province that promotes cooperation between companies and industries of the two countries.

"There are many fields where we can cooperate. China can invest in India's infrastructure and food processing, while India's quality drugs and financial service are hoping to enter the Chinese market," he said.